Hi there, I’m Marietta Gentles Crawford

—a writer, personal brand strategist, author, and crusader for entrepreneurs who want to use their expertise to design businesses (and lives) they love.

I’ve been writing since I was a quirky 12-year-old in private school who religiously read Cosmopolitan, Glamour, and Vogue magazines. Somehow, I wrote about experiences that were beyond my adolescent years. (Well, now that I think about it, my choice of leisure reading may have had an influence.)

I guess you can say I absorbed everything around me. As an escape, I wrote and ended up with almost 100 stories about love, loss, wins, and struggles. Some of the stories I created were based on my personal experiences. The others were characters I brought to life on paper. All of them currently reside on crumpled stained loose-leaf papers in a soft red dusty binder. (One day I plan to publish them as a collection.) Fast forward [ahem] years, I now help passionate and fierce entrepreneurs share their brand stories. Consider me a writer and personal brand strategist on steroids—minus the major mood swings.

My work has been featured in places like The Muse, Inc., Fast Company, Thrive Global, and HuffPo. I also published a personal branding career book From Nine to Thrive: A Guide to Building Your Personal Brand and Elevating Your Career. It was the most humbling experience putting my book out into the world that was not only a guide to help others but also included personal moments in my career that ultimately led me to start my own business, MGC Ink.

My Whole Life Has Been About Reinvention.

Even with the writing accolades I can now brag about, none of this happened overnight. Throughout my 15 years of working in corporate, I battled with not wanting to fall in line with the status quo and constantly reinvented myself for new opportunities. That being said, I exercised my branding chops, capturing the attention of high-profile companies like Macy’s, JP Morgan Chase, and Pfizer who hired me for my expertise. I’ve worked as a full-time employee, contractor, freelancer, side-hustler, and entrepreneur.

Although I sometimes struggle to shake the formal corporate vibe I left behind (it’s like a tattoo, I swear!), I’ve learned a lot through the various roles I played. In fact, a lot of what I learned from marketing myself and working with big brands now helps me guide small businesses and freelancers today.

In many ways, my mission to help businesses succeed is so gratifying that it feels selfish sometimes. I know what it’s like to want to design your life outside of the limits others set for you. I, too, don’t fit neatly in any one box—and that’s okay.

If You’re Stuck Trying to Find Your Voice, Don’t Be.

I’m so glad you found me because if your goal is to make more money in your business, grow your career, or get that side-hustle started that you always dreamed about, you’ve found your home. You don’t have to struggle to find your authentic voice. You simply have to know your message like you know the full name of your childhood crush who broke your heart.

In the age of the internet where we all have an even platform to get noticed, there’s something about people who are sincere about adding value with an in-your-face like it or not mission that emotionally slam dunks connections.

You can’t fake being authentic. It’s the human being behind the business that draws in their people.